Damping Engine MTG Card

Enables card advantage by hindering opponents from executing their key plays efficiently. Offers game pace control, complementing decks that thrive on limiting opponent’s options. Has a significant role in formats with decks designed for casting numerous spells.

Mana cost
Converted mana cost	4
Rarity	Rare
Type	Artifact
Released	1999-02-15
Set symbol
Set name	Urza's Legacy
Set code	ULG
Number	124
Frame	1997
Layout	Normal
Border	Black
Illustred by	rk post

Text of card

A player who controls more permanents than any other cannot play lands or artifact, creature, or enchantment spells. That player may sacrifice a permanent to ignore this effect until end of turn.

Cards like Damping Engine

Damping Engine is a unique artifact in Magic: The Gathering, inviting comparison to other cards that control the battlefield. In a similar category, Winter Orb restricts land untapping, a key similarity to the Damping Engine’s limitation on the number of permanents a player can untap. However, Damping Engine’s impact is broader, encompassing all permanents, not just lands.

Static Orb is another card that echoes this theme, halving the number of permanents players can untap each turn. While similarly oppressive, it differs from Damping Engine by offering a fixed restriction rather than scaling with the number of permanents in play. Meekstone, on the other hand, focuses on tapping down creatures with sizable power, aligning with the Damping Engine’s theme of restraining opponents’ key resources but applying a more targeted form of restraint.

Examining these comparisons highlights Damping Engine’s particular niche. Its capability to scale with the size of the game presents a variable challenge to opponents, making it a versatile and formidable card in players’ arsenal that can dynamically alter the course of a match in Magic: The Gathering.

Cards similar to Damping Engine by color, type and mana cost

Krark-Clan Ironworks - MTG Card versions

Card Pros

Card Advantage: The Damping Engine is a unique asset in the realm of MTG, offering a strategic edge by potentially denying opponents the ability to cast their most influential cards. This can lead to an indirect card advantage, as the restriction it imposes can force your adversary into suboptimal plays, causing them to fall behind in resources.

Resource Acceleration: While the Damping Engine itself doesn’t directly contribute to resource acceleration, it plays a pivotal role in slowing down your adversaries. This, in turn, can give you a relative increase in resources as you’re able to make more efficient use of your turns while your opponent struggles to adapt to the constraints imposed by the Engine.

Instant Speed: The Damping Engine operates at a continuous, passive pace that doesn’t require activation. Although it’s not an instant, its constant, looming presence on the battlefield means your strategies can progress unhampered and at full speed, while your opponent must carefully navigate their turns around its restrictions.

Card Cons

Discard Requirement: To activate the essential ability of Damping Engine, players must discard a card, which can strain your hand, especially in game states where card advantage is crucial.

Specific Mana Cost: Damping Engine demands a precise combination of mana to cast, which could be challenging for multicolor decks that struggle with mana consistency.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With its higher mana cost, Damping Engine competes with numerous other impactful options at the same cost tier, potentially making it a less attractive choice for players seeking efficient mana investment.

Reasons to Include Damping Engine in Your Collection

Versatility: Damping Engine offers a unique approach to controlling the pace of the game, making it suitable for strategy-focused decks that aim to limit opponents’ board development.

Combo Potential: Its ability to restrict the number of spells players can cast pairs well with other cards that punish or inhibit opponent’s actions, creating powerful lockdown combos.

Meta-Relevance: In formats where decks are often built to play numerous spells each turn, Damping Engine can serve as a critical piece to disrupt these strategies and provide a significant advantage.

How to beat

Damping Engine is a notable card that can significantly impact the board state in Magic: The Gathering. Its ability to limit the opponent’s potential for explosive plays by restricting the number of untapped artifacts, creatures, and lands makes it a powerful control tool. Pitted against such a stifling card, players might feel their strategy constricted, looking for efficient ways to mitigate its effect on the game.

To overcome the constraints imposed by Damping Engine, consider including cards that can remove enchantments from play. Naturalize and Disenchant are two such spells that can easily dispatch the Engine, swinging the game back in your favor. Another strategy is to play fewer but more impactful cards each turn, circumventing Damping Engine’s untap limitation. Prioritize cards with abilities that can be activated without tapping, ensuring that your game plan remains fluid, even under pressure.

Additionally, countering Damping Engine with counterspells like Negate or the more versatile Counterspell upon its casting is another effective technique. Assessing and embracing these strategies will prepare you to dismantle the Damping Engine’s oppressive control, allowing you to maintain the initiative and advance your game plan.

Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Damping Engine MTG card by a specific set like Urza's Legacy, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Damping Engine and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Damping Engine has restrictions

Format	Legality
Commander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Vintage	Legal
Duel	Legal
Predh	Legal
Penny	Legal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Damping Engine card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date	Text
2008-08-01	A player affected by this card can sacrifice a permanent any time they could cast an instant. This is a special action that doesn’t use the stack and can’t be responded to.
2008-08-01	A player can only sacrifice a permanent to end this effect if they have more permanents than any other player, and they haven’t already sacrificed a permanent to end the effect this turn. The ability to sacrifice a creature is granted by the same effect that is being ended.